Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard is one of the more exotic wines in the range, bursting with complex aromas of strawberries, plums, potpourri, rich spice and a subtle bass note of grilled meat. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, layered and beautifully complete, simultaneously ample and tense, rich but weightless. This Pinot Noir's silky structure and concentration reflect yields so low that ten vines are typically required to produce one bottle. Four or five years of patience will be required and more will be rewarded.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Also seeing 100% stems, the 2016 Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard is pure class and I always find this cuvée to be one of the most textbook Santa Cruz Mountain Pinot Noirs in the lineup. Ample dark fruits, forest floor, decayed flowers, and hints of earth all flow to a medium-bodied 2016 that has everything in the right places, no hard edges, and a great finish. You can enjoy bottles today or cellar for 10-15 years.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
A rugged and topographically diverse cool-climate appellation with a rich history, the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA stretches from Half Moon Bay, just south of San Francisco, to the northern border of Monterey County. Elevations range from 800 feet to upwards of 3,000 and microclimates vary substantially depending on which side of the mountains the vineyards lie; cool ocean winds and fog play an important role here. This can be a challenging region in which to grow grapes, but it is well worth the effort. Santa Cruz Mountains wines are noted for balanced acidity levels, often showing great aging potential. Wine has been made here since the 1800s, most notably from the legendary Ridge Vineyards, whose Monte Bello vineyard garners international admiration.
Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon are the stars of this region, while Merlot and Zinfandel also perform quite well. Organic and sustainable vineyard practices are becoming increasingly common.